Well, today is the last day of my 50s. Here’s how the day went.

We finally left our luxurious camping ground and continued heading west. It was much cooler today as we drove the back roads and enjoyed the countryside.

We could’ve detoured to a castle, but we weren’t feeling it. There are only so many castles you can see. Still, one happened to pop up along our route. More of a grand chateau, really, something straight out of France, with neatly trimmed lawns, a central fountain, and colourful flower beds. They offered tours, but we gave it a miss.

We stopped at a LIDL to get supplies. Chippies and chocolate. I really am starting my diet tomorrow. Oh, that’s right, it’s my birthday. Let’s start it the day after. 

We found a nice place by a pond to have an afternoon nap. It was perfect. The shade of a tree, and a cool breeze blowing through the van. Just as I was settling down, I heard a loud plop, followed by another. I looked out the rear doors, and there were giant fish jumping out of the water and landing with a splash. I couldn’t sleep with that racket going on! So we read our books for a bit, then moved on.

We looked at another camping ground on the way, but it was heaving with people. I think we were really lucky with the one we stayed at.

Anyway, not much else happened on the last day of my 50s. We found a nice spot by a lake to camp. It’s quite picturesque, but there are a lot of locals here enjoying the area. We might be in for a noisy night, though I assume they will all go home when it gets dark. 

What am I gonna do for my birthday? No idea. Every day is a celebration when you’re on holiday.

It was a much cooler day today and it was absolute bliss. We decided to stay put as I needed to get a video finished, as it had been too hot to work over the last few days. And it was a nice campground, not too busy.

One thing we’ve noticed here is how people stare. You know how if we see something or someone different, we do a quick glance, then look away not wanting to get caught staring.

But here they don’t care. They’ll walk past and stare at our van, trying to see in. They stare at the number plate because it’s different. They’ll stare at us as we walk on by. I’ll wave and say hello but they’ll just ignore me and continue to stare. And all of Eastern Europe has been like this and I find it weird. Mike reckons it’s because of their roots, it is instilled in them to be suspicious. Maybe he’s right. Or maybe they’re just rude.

Anyway, the pig man was back, so we’ve had smoked ribs and chips 3 days in a row now, and I’m starting to feel sick. But I did get my video finished, now I just have to find somewhere to upload it.

It’s still hot, way too hot to think about driving anywhere, so we decided to stay put for the day. The van was already warming up by mid-morning, and we had laundry piling up, so it seemed like the perfect excuse to slow down and get a few things done.

There’s no laundry facility here, just a bucket and a tap, but thankfully, we’ve got unlimited water, which makes hand-washing and rinsing a lot easier. Mike rigged up a clothesline with some rope between the van, the fence and the trees, and in this heat, everything dried in no time. 

Our shaded spot from yesterday was in full sun by morning, and the van turned into a giant oven. By the time the shade finally reached us in the afternoon, it was too late, the heat had already soaked into everything.

So we gave up on being productive and we found a patch of shade under the trees, pulled out our books, and did absolutely nothing.

That evening the pig man was back with his smoked pork, so we ate there again. Then it pelted it down. For some reason the rain didn’t cool it off much.

After dinner it stopped briefly, so we made it back to the van, but about 30 minutes later came the thunderstorms. The wind howled through the trees, blowing them in every direction, pine cones crashing on our roof, flashes and cracks of thunder overhead. Someone’s gazebo got airborne, and a couple of people were desperately trying to pull it down. The entire storm was a little terrifying. I wanted to move out from under the trees, afraid the pinecones might be hurting Bertie. But he protected us well.

We settled down for a game of chess, trying not to wince every time a pine cone fell on Bertie. Eventually the storm blew over and we were able to relax.

I have a little usb fan I bought recently, so I pointed that on me and slept well.

It’s HOT!!! We headed off early-ish to beat the heat, but by lunchtime the sun was blazing through the front window and it was pushing 50 degrees inside the van. I started feeling heat-stressed and dizzy, so we pulled into a shopping complex to cool down. We grabbed a Coke and sat at a pizza restaurant to take a closer look at our route.

The direction we were heading didn’t have many campgrounds, and for some reason, I’d been navigating us north of Prague. Turns out, heading south is much quieter. I really wanted to find somewhere to stop for a few days, to do some washing and avoid driving in the heat.

I found a campground about an hour’s drive away. From the photos, it looked promising. Trees, a lake, a breeze if we’re lucky, so we aimed for it,  expecting it would be full with the school holidays in full swing.

But OMG, the drive there was brutal. No shade, just a relentless sun beating down on the road and through the windows. It was unbearable. By the time we arrived, we were drenched in sweat and desperate for relief.

Thankfully, they had space, and even better, it was in the shade! The spot was a little sloped, but we got the levellers out and made it work. The shade and the lake view made the tilt totally worth it. We’re just lacking any breeze.

And the price? A bargain for Europe, just $25 NZD. Most places are twice that!

By this point, we were hot, sticky, and terribly bothered, so we put on our togs and headed straight down to the lake. The water was bliss. Cool, refreshing, and exactly what we needed. Surprisingly, it wasn’t too crowded for a Sunday, which made it even better.

After the swim, we felt human again and made a beeline for the showers. It was then I realised we hadn’t had a shower since Estonia!  Sure, we wash every day and we’ve had a few swims along the way, but nothing compares to standing under a steady stream of water and finally washing your hair. But strangely enough, you get used to not showering and it makes you wonder how necessary it actually is.

I opted for a cold shower and it was delightful. Van life really makes you appreciate the simple things. Shade, unlimited water, and a place to call home.

There is an outdoor restaurant on site here where a man is smoking meat. The smell alone was enough to stop us in our tracks. The meals looked amazing, so we had to try some. Mike ordered smoked pork steak and I ordered the pork ribs. Both were melt-in-your-mouth good and up there with some of the best BBQ I’ve had in the States. The smoking reminded me of the flavour of Dad’s smoked Kahawai. It was cheap, only $7NZD, so we’ll probably go there again tonight if he’s there.

I like how we are stumbling on the places only locals go to. Apart from the Italians we saw the other day, we haven’t seen any other nationalities other than locals. It makes the experience feel more genuine, like we’re getting a glimpse into everyday life, not just ticking off tourist spots.

After dinner we watched the sun set over the lake, and it was beautiful. Still hot though. It was 28 degrees at 8pm, and was still going to be 25 at midnight. According to the weather, we would be having a low of 17 degrees at 5am. Then the heat would return all over again. I guess we just have to learn to relax into it. Let the heat slow us down and take it easy.

We had a quiet nights sleep in the city carpark, and this morning we went for a walk into the old town to have a look around.

Banská Bystrica is actually a really nice town nestled in the mountains. The Old Town was all cobblestones and colourful buildings. Fountains splashed in the square, and people sat in cafes, enjoying their morning coffee. A fancy church with twin towers rose at the end of the plaza, clearly thinking he was the star. We took a photo with a rubbish truck in front of it, just to bring it down a notch.

There was also a museum here about the Slovak National Uprising which I think would have been interesting but it wasn’t in English, so we didn’t bother. But there were some old tanks to look at and this was good enough for me.

It was lunchtime by the time we moved on. Where to? No idea. It was going to be a hot day, and I just wanted to find somewhere in the shade to stay. But it’s impossible. 

We drove a windy road through a gorge and forest, and while it was very beautiful, the car and motorbike drivers were crazy. I mentioned in yesterday’s blog how drivers overtake without caring if it’s a blind corner, a solid white line, or if a car is coming the other way. The same applies to motorbikes. We were on edge for most of the drive. One motorbike overtook us on a blind corner just as a car came around it causing a near miss. How they didn’t collide is beyond me. And the whole drive was like that.

Fun fact: Slovakia has a slightly higher population than NZ, and a lower road toll. How? I have no idea. Maybe their drivers are just more switched on.

And the impatience isn’t limited to the roads. At the supermarket, a woman came barrelling toward me with her trolley, clearly expecting me to leap out of the way. I didn’t as I was looking at something, and she huffed as she swerved past. 

Then we continued our drive up towards another castle. But this was no ordinary castle. It was a proper fairytale one. Okay, some of the others were fairytale too, but this looked more like it belonged in a Disney film than the middle of Slovakia.

The place has been rebuilt a few times over the centuries, but the current look is due to a rich Count in the 1800s, clearly going for a theatrical vibe. It might have been nice to look around, but it was a Saturday and the streets were crawling with people, so we just looked at it from the outside and headed on, along another windy road.

I am having so much trouble finding suitable camping spots in Slovakia. The last two nights have been in city carparks and we really wanted somewhere we can just sit in the shade, maybe do some washing and chill out. I  keep reminiscing of that beautiful river spot in Poland, with the friendly Polish people and their campfires and sausages. But nope, there was nowhere like that to be found, not even a camping ground.

At 6.30 I found a place overlooking a lake in a city, which was quite picturesque and we sat and chilled out in the shade for a while. But with the motorway on one side, and a train line on the other, it was quite noisy. So we packed up and drove to the Czech Republic!

Not much changed as we crossed the border. We stopped at a service station for one of their sausages (they call them hotdogs here) and considered that dinner. And we drove and drove, finally finding a carpark up on a hill with beautiful views over the countryside. It wasn’t ideal, there would be no shade in the morning, but for now, at 9pm, we considered it home.

We had a great nights sleep in the carpark in Levoca, and left around 9am, to go and visit a massive castle on the hill. Spiš Castle is one of the largest castle complexes in Central Europe, with roots dating back to the 12th century.

We were thankful to arrive early as the day was already heating up. It was a pretty cool castle, and huge!. We climbed up the narrow stairs to the tower, but thankfully these were well lit, no candle required! We spent a good 1.5 hours wandering around the castle and the walls and as we were leaving, hoards of people were coming in. In Europe, you gotta get up early (or arrive late) to avoid the crowds.

We then headed into the national park looking for shade. But all the parking spots were pay parking  and chocka block. We didn’t feel the need to go hiking with hundreds of other people, so we continued driving until we found a lovely pull off on the side of a quiet road, in the shade and overlooking the mountains. This was more like it. So we had our lunch and a little nap.

A little way up the road, past all the paid parking spots, we found another little parking spot at the start of a walk. And this one was free, and not too many people. So we went for a short hike until it looked like it was going to rain. We made it back to the car just as it pelted down.

Then we continued through the national park. The road got steeper and steeper and windier and narrower. The rain hammered down and bounced off the road like it was on a trampoline. It was a little scary, winding our way up this forest path, a steep drop off to our left and barely enough room for two cars. The road was rutted and pot-holed, with little rivers running across it. And it just went on forever with nowhere to turn even if we wanted to!

When we finally reached the top and came out of the trees it felt like a relief. Thankfully the road down was much smoother. We’ve been having a lot of trouble finding decent places to stop for the night in Slovakia. I  saw there was one at a castle carpark that had good reviews, so we headed up there. An extremely narrow and windy goat track that anything bigger than our van would struggle with. At the top, there were a whole lot of people setting up for some kind of medieval thing at the castle. They told us we couldn’t stay there. 

By 7pm, we were both getting tired. The drivers here are somehow worse than the ones in Poland. They overtake whenever they feel like it, even if someone’s coming the other way. I’ve seen a couple of near head-ons where I was sure there’d be a crash. But people just seem to accept it and get out of the way. Like today, someone overtook us with a car coming straight at them. The other driver had to brake, and Mike had to pull right off the road. They don’t care. It’s crazy. And dangerous.

Anyway, as a result of mad drivers on a Friday night, we decided to take the back roads. I can see why nobody does that now. The road was a mess, ruts, potholes, and washouts everywhere. We could have walked faster. We thought about backtracking, but there was no where to turn around. Did I mention the road was also narrow? It was pretty painful, but after a few kms we make it to a little village, and the road smoothed out and we were able to continue.

It was about 8pm when we finally found a place to camp in a carpark in a town. Neither of us felt like cooking, so we walked about 20 minutes into town and found a kebab shop.

By the time we were walking back, it was dark. I felt a bit uneasy. I didn’t know the town, and everything felt a bit too quiet. We took the path along the river, where a few homeless people were drinking and hanging around. Nothing happened, but the atmosphere felt off, so we cut back to the main roads. Thankfully, all was fine in the end, but in a new place after dark, you just never really know.

We snuck back into Bertie and settled in for the night, happy to be home.

We had a wonderful nights sleep at the castle ruins, and awoke to heavy rain. We wanted to find a canyon walk not far from here, but it turned out to be tricky.

First, we got distracted by a city which had a library. It was pissing down, so we thought it would be a good idea and use the library’s free internet to upload a video. But finding the library was a mission. Mike sent me out in the pouring lane to look. Where the library was supposed to be was a Vietnamese restaurant. Inside a sad old Soviet building were a few shops and a musty odour.

I asked a few people until someone eventually spoke English and told me where the library was. I walked up some metal steps, the sound echo-ing around me like I was in a cold-war prison. On the next floor was an electrical shop, and some really old-fashioned clothes shops. I felt like I’d stepped back in time. The only other place was what looked like an art-gallery. I stepped through the metal detector at the entrance, wondering how safe this place actually was to need them. At the end of the gallery was the library. I asked if they had internet and could we use it. Thankfully the kind lady said yes, so I went back out in the pouring rain to fetch Mike and our laptops.

After uploading the video, the rain stopped and we headed on to find our canyon walk. But when we got to the turn off, it was down a very narrow path with a steep drop. I know Bertie is an adventure van, but we weren’t taking him down there. So we went back to a parking spot we saw earlier with a beautiful view over the mountains, and had a little nap.

Afterwards, we tried to find the canyon walk a different way, but I got distracted by the storks. I’ve been obsessed with these guys. We’ve been seeing them a lot, high up in their giant nests, raising their little families. But now it’s time for the babies to leave the nest, and I really want to see them take their first practice flights. I saw one today, he’d just left the nest and was sitting on a nearby power pole. But he was just sitting there, looking worn out. I keep having little stork conversations in my head. I think there might be a story in it.

Anyway, to get to the canyon walk was impossible, so we gave up and moved on. We were navigating to another UNESCO-listed town, when I decided to take the back roads. I’m not sure this was such a good idea. As we drove through little villages in the middle of nowhere, there were a lot of people just hanging around in the road, drinking, staring, not waving back when we waved. The houses had rubbish lying around and  looked unkempt. It was a different vibe to the rest of Eastern Europe so far where everyone has been friendly, or busy working in the fields. But these people seemed to have nothing to do except stand and stare. I didn’t feel particularly safe driving through these towns, so we might keep to the main roads in future.

We eventually arrived at the unesco city we were heading for. We saw the first campervans we’d seen in weeks, so thought perhaps we were back on the tourist trail. They were from Italy, and there were two couples travelling together. We had a fun chat with them using google translate. Then we went and explored the old-town. One thing we have noticed is the lack of tourists in Slovakia. Elsewhere, a place like this would be crawling with tourists. Maybe they don’t bother to leave Bratislava.

It’s pretty much like any other town in Europe. The basilica was impressive from the outside, but was closed for the day. I think you might have to pay to look around so we probably won’t do that. Then we saw an impressive church up on the hill. It turns out it is also a free place to camp. So off we drove, up the steep and narrow road. There was a beautiful view of the city down below. But the carpark for camping, while nice, didn’t have the vibe for us. As we headed down, we passed the Italians on their way up. It would be the perfect place for them to camp as a group.

We headed back into the city, where we parked in a carpark in town (free parking). We went out for dinner, but it was pretty average food. When we got back to the car park, the Italians were camped next to us again!

I never got around to doing yesterdays blog, so I’ll put it in this one. 

Yesterday we headed off to find a walk to some glacial lakes. But we didn’t get far. The direction Google was taking us took us to to a forest road which was closed off to traffic. So we backtracked as far as our camping spot, and decided to stay another day. It was a nice spot, with a toilet, so we thought why not. So we basically did nothing all day.

But today it was time to move on. We tried to find the walk to the glacial lakes, but again, it took us to a forestry road. Apparently you can drive down them, but there are huge fines if you get caught. We decided not to take the chance. So we the turned around and back tracked to go a different way. 

Then we turned off onto a rutted and pot-holed road. Not gravel, just really bad tarmac. This was a very uncomfortable drive for about ten minutes when we finally arrived at the parking for the walk.

Even though it was hot, I put my longs on and a long sleeved top, not wanting to get attacked by mozzies or ticks. Mike did not. About ten minutes into the walk it became overgrown with stinging nettles, so Mike decided to go back to the car to put on his longs. I waited for him in a shelter. It was quite neat. They had free wood to use, and a fireplace which looked like a pizza oven. And even a smaller oven and hob. It would be a great spot for hikers travelling through.

When Mike came back, we ate our sandwiches there and continued on our walk. But it got even more overgrown and muddy. It was not enjoyable. Abort. Abort. I said. It’s becoming a saying. So we turned around and aborted the walk. It was supposed to be a 3 hour walk, and I wasn’t going to be bush bashing it all the way. We are the worst tourists!

So we headed on, not sure where to go. We decided Slovakia might be a good idea for a change of scene. We crossed the border, took some photos, and realised the scenery hadn’t changed much at all. But it was weird how all the signs were now in Russian. And we saw a Russian tank.

We stopped off and had a look at a UNESCO-listed church, which was pretty fancy, wooden and old. In fact, it’s the oldest and best-preserved wooden church in Slovakia, crafted entirely from red spruce, with no metal nails used in its construction. The interior has early 19th century wall paintings and Gothic panel art. It was quaint, but fancy.

Then we visited another UNESCO-listed old town called Bardejov. It also had a fancy church, the type you might see on the cover of a fantasy book, and coloured buildings around the square. We wanted to have dinner in town, but the choices were pizza or burgers, and we didn’t fancy either, so we opted for a beer overlooking the old town. We thought about staying in the carpark for the night, but didn’t really fancy it. So we headed off to look for a parking spot for the night. 

It was then I realised I was heading the wrong way and back towards Poland. I know we don’t really have a plan, but the vague plan is to head west towards the Czech republic on our way back to England. So we turned around and started our hunt for our camping spot for the night. We no longer have the safety net of the midnight sun to look for spots as it now gets dark at 8.45pm. And it was now 6.30pm.

So we didn’t muck around. We checked out a few spots heading west but they were no good. Finally, about 8pm, we found a nice spot by an abandoned castle ruins. We stopped and watched the sun set over the river from the castle. It was pretty surreal.

We sadly left our wonderful river spot. It was the perfect place to sit and relax for a few days. We even thought about staying another day, but thought we had better move on.

We headed to the Bieszczady Mountains, which border with Poland, Ukraine and Slovakia. We’d also heard they can be very touristy. We didn’t really know where to go, so we navigated to the town of Solina. As we were driving in there were many parking places, with people sat outside waiting to collect money. Then we saw the gondola. Then we saw a street with 1000’s of people, like ants crawling all over the place. Abort. Abort.

So I asked the internet where to go instead. He told us which popular spots to avoid and where to go. So we kept driving. But it was hot. Really hot. Driving in a car with no A/C and the sun blazing through the window was not fun. All I wanted was a shady place to sit and have lunch. Easier said than done.

We tried three different spots before we found one that was just acceptable. The car wasn’t in the shade, but there were picnic tables and chairs under the trees, and a nice river running through. That was enough.

We stopped for lunch, then took a walk alongside the river. It was shady and cooler than being in the car. We hiked up a hill with a view over a quarry, then had to backtrack. By that stage, we were ready for our afternoon nap. We woke around 4:30pm and decided to camp there for the night.

It turned out to be a lovely spot, right beside a small river, with swimming holes if it got too hot. Then it rained and cooled everything down. There was also a huge shelter with a wood stove in the middle and a pile of free firewood. We didn’t use it, but it was good to know it was there.

We’re both feeling a bit weary at the moment. Might be time to slow things down a little.

It was too nice a day to leave our river camp, so we stayed another night. It was 26 degrees today, so we ventured into the river for a swim, and it was so nice. It was flowing quite fast, but only knee deep, so we sat down and just let the water flow over us. It was a nice way to cool down.

All the other weekend campers left today, so we were all alone. Nobody to light a fire and invite us to join. 

Nothing else happened. I suppose we should move on tomorrow.